Travel Gear: Alpackalypse Raft and the Narrative Clip Camera

Alpackalypse Raft

If we endure much more of the “apackalyptic” rainfall of the last couple of weeks, we may not just be interested in this inflatable raft (pictured above) for an adventure holiday. Its designers claim it’s the most advanced, whitewater-ready, packable raft on the market. Innovations include smaller tubes all around, which in turn mean more paddle room.

The robust 400 denier fabric brings increased stability and its low centre of gravity enhances responsiveness. Defalted, it packs away to a compact 43cm x 28cm (17” x 11”) cylinder; so not much more than a tent-sized addition to your load. Now you’ve just got find some whitewater that isn’t metered.

$1900 from alpackawhitewater.com

Ryobi Phone Works

Though intended more for the DIYer perhaps, Ryobi’s Phone Works tools might also be just the thing for the more fussy (or more discerning?) traveller.

It’s a set of accessories for your smartphone that extend its sensory capabilities in several directions. There’s a laser leveller and a measurer: perfect for when that hotel room is a little more “bijou” than promoted.

Also a moisture measurer if you’re really going to get down to brass tacks. These and the rest present their data through an app, where you can share or geo-tag the locations, add photos and generally get your digital on.

From about $15 and up; see ryobitools.com for details.

Narrative Clip Camera

There are a few of these journal-cameras available which automatically document and record your day.

The Narrative Clip is among the most discreet though, only a couple of centimetres square, with a simple clip. But it’s all smarts inside: it takes a 5MP snap every 30 seconds, knows which way up the camera is and works as soon as it’s clipped on.

The day’s photos get stored and archived on its own system - charging the Narrative while the images transfer by USB - but you pay a subscription for this, which may put some off.

$279 from getnarrative.com

[ @tomtomkelly ]